


fault lines (tremble underneath my glass house)

by Eternal_Peace_is_Overrated



Series: cold bones (that's my love) [1]
Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Angst, Flashbacks, Good Sibling Number Five | The Boy, Hopeful Ending, Klaus Hargreeves Deserves Better, Klaus Hargreeves Has PTSD, Klaus Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Klaus Hargreeves-centric, M/M, Past Klaus Hargreeves/David "Dave" Katz, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, So much angst, Sober Klaus Hargreeves, Veteran Klaus Hargreeves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-12
Updated: 2020-09-12
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:08:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,301
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26419243
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eternal_Peace_is_Overrated/pseuds/Eternal_Peace_is_Overrated
Summary: Wherein Five and Klaus's conversation lasts a little bit longer, and Five takes his role as little big brother seriously.***“I love him, Five. I love him and- a-and...”“And he’s gone anyways,” Five finished softly.Klaus couldn’t find the words to explain, couldn’t find the strength to say them out loud, couldn’t get them out past the tears even if he wanted to, but Five was always the smartest, and he doesn't need Klaus to say anything at all.“You love him,” Five says, voice incredulous as he repeats. “And he’s gone anyways. You love him, and you think that’s why he’s gone. Because you went and loved him at all.”***(Title change- previously called ‘all the missing pieces of my heart (they finally collide)’)
Relationships: Klaus Hargreeves/David "Dave" Katz, Number Five | The Boy & Klaus Hargreeves
Series: cold bones (that's my love) [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1931503
Comments: 18
Kudos: 443





	fault lines (tremble underneath my glass house)

**Author's Note:**

> Hello all! This got...angsty? Not all that surprising, I know, it's me. 
> 
> The beginning went well, and then I got to Five and Klaus's interactions and the struggle began. This isn't the best it could be, I'm well aware of that, but I'm happy with how it turned out always, so I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Leave a kudos or drop a comment on your way out! I love feedback. 
> 
> Thank you all for taking the time to read! 
> 
> (Title from Earth by Sleeping At Last; I changed it, I know, but I wanted the previous title for an upcoming fic, and this ones angstier ;))

The water burned too hot against Klaus’s skin but he couldn’t be bothered to turn the temperature down, not when his entire body felt the type of cold that went so bone deep it _ached_. 

As the tub filled, he sank back to rest his head against the lip, bringing trembling hands up to wind around himself, ragged fingernails scratching absently at his own arms as he stared up at the ceiling, idly watching the lightbulb flicker above him. 

He blinked once, slowly, and suddenly the ceiling stuttered and shifted until he was staring at torn palm leaves and an orange sky, dull and hazy, the splash of the faucet melting into the ear splitting rattle of gunfire; every blink turned the scene more real and he could feel the panic starting to set in, breaths starting to come in harsh pants as his fingers reached for a rifle that wasn’t there, eyes tearing against the haze of smoke and ash polluting the air, the panic swelling as he looked frantically around for Dave ( _where’s Dave, the bomb had thrown them apart but he couldn’t be far; Klaus’s ears were ringing, and he felt blood oozing lazily down his shoulder blade but the pain was distant, unimportant while Dave was MIA, lost somewhere on the battlefield and outside of Klaus’s blurry field of vision, fuck, he had to find Dave)_ , when something red caught his vision out of the corner of his eye, something red against...porcelain? That couldn’t be right, he was in the middle of a _forest_ , and Dave was missing, and Klaus was...in water? Did he get thrown into one of the puddles from when it rained last night? But he was submerged, and it didn’t make sense, and he needed to find Dave but his limbs felt sluggish and heavy, his head full of cotton, but he threw himself forward with a war cry anyways, fingers reaching for the silver glint of the blade that was just within reach, fingertips grasping on-

-handles. 

Handles, silver handles to the tap (not a blade, he didn’t need that here), because he wasn’t _there_ , he was home, or at least the place he called home for the first seventeen miserable years of his life. 

Sucking in a ragged breath, he turns the tap off and braces still bloodied hands on either side of the tub, pushing himself up with trembling arms, muscles held so tense that they’re weak and shaky because of it; he doesn’t even bother trying to wash up now, unable to stay in the tub any longer, not when the steam from the water is snaking into his lungs like smoke and he can’t _breathe_ -

So no, he can’t sit there any longer. 

He winds a towel around his waist and staggers to his bedroom, tracking bloody footprints behind him, drying off as best he can before he begins to dress, pulling on his comfiest pants (the leather ones; those ones have gotten him through his toughest times) and scratching at ribs, his back, a frustrated keen pushing past clenched teeth as it does absolutely nothing to curb the itch that won’t fucking _go away_. 

He’s got his arms shoved through the softest shirt he owns, about to pull it over his head, when a quiet knock sounds at the door and Five’s voice follows after it, voice soft when he asks, “You okay?”

There’s a lot Klaus could say to that, a lot he _wants_ to say to that, but he doesn’t trust himself enough to say too much without giving in to the sob that’s been trapped in his throat since he appeared back on that bus, so he shrugs and mumbles, “Yeah, just...long night.”

Five tilts his head. “More than one from the looks of it.”

“Yep,” he nods a bit, dragging the shirt down across over-sensitive skin. 

“Don’t remember the dog tags.” 

“They belonged to a...friend.” Friend. Friend, as if that’s all they were, as if Dave wasn’t the only reason Klaus _stayed_ ; trapped alone in a time that wasn’t his, still reeling from Hazel and Cha-Cha’s torture, suffering through cold-turkey withdrawals in the middle of a warzone, surrounded by hundreds of ghosts that never stopped _screaming_ , one foot constantly on death’s door; as if Dave wasn’t the reason all of that was _worth it_ , as if Klaus wouldn’t have died a hundred times over just to see Dave smile. 

“How about that new tattoo?”

Klaus could feel frustration start to well, pushing at the lump in his throat, and he viciously shoved it back down, pulling up the barest hint of a smile. “You know,” he huffed out a quiet laugh. “I don’t totally remember even getting it.” He waved a hand at his little big brother. “Like I said, it was a long night.”

The smile on Five’s face was downright predatory; desperate too, maybe a little bit crazed. 

“You did it, didn’t you?” Five followed Klaus over to the bed as Klaus lowered himself ever so slowly onto it, not trusting his shaky legs to keep him upright any longer. 

“What are you talking about?”

Five let out a short breath through his nose. “You know, I recognize the symptoms, Klaus.”

Klaus blew out a slow, steady breath. “The symptoms of what?” He asked, resting his elbows on his knees and dropping his head into his hands, fingertips digging into his temples to try to alleviate the steady throb behind his eyes. 

“The jet lag, the full body itch, the headache that feels like somebody shoved a box of cotton up into your nose and through your brain.” The edge to Five’s voice faded into something softer again. “You want to tell me about it?”

The frustration grew again and Klaus tipped his head up to look at his brother. 

“Your pals, when they broke into the house and couldn’t find _you_ ,” he said, jaw clenching so tightly the muscles twitched. “They took _me_ hostage instead.” 

Five smiled again, a cold and vindictive little thing and said, almost sounding _proud_ , “And in return, you stole their briefcase.” 

Klaus huffed, shot him a look that said ‘ _duh_ ’. “Yeah, I thought there was money in it, or I could pawn it, y’know, whatever…” He closed his eyes, dropped his head down. “And then I opened it.” 

There was excitement in Five’s voice, now, and he was pacing, hands tucked into his pockets. “And the next thing you know, you were where...or should I say, when?”

Klaus glared at his brother, saying sharply, “What difference does it make?”

Five sounded incredulous. “What diff- I- okay.” He shook his head. “How long were you gone?”

Klaus blinked slowly at his brother, who had stopped in front of him again. “Almost a year.” 

“A year…” Five stopped pacing and stood in front of him, stepping closer. “Do you know what this means?”

Klaus held back a hysterical laugh, fingers clenching and unclenching in the comforter. “Yeah,” he smiled, small and manic. “I’m ten months older now.”

Five scowled. “This isn't some sort of joke, Klaus. Hazel and Cha-Cha will do whatever it takes to get that briefcase back.” He paused, looked around. “Where is it?”

“Gone,” Klaus shrugged. “I destroyed it. Poof.”

Five snarled, shoved his face closer to Klaus. “What the _hell_ were you thinking?”

Klaus felt the brittle hold he had on his temper start to fray and leaned closer, too, snapping, “What do you _care_?”

“What do I care- I- I needed it, you moron, so I could get _back_ , so I could start over-”

And then it snapped and Klaus was standing, shoving past Five and hissing, “Just- enough. Interrogation is over, okay? Just leave.” 

Klaus almost made it to the stairs, too, almost got _away_ , when Five’s voice sounded behind him, soft but firm.

“Wait.” 

And Klaus- he was tempted to keep going, not having the energy to deal with Five’s little temper tantrum, but something in Five’s voice, in the slight wobble, in the hesitation and the caution, it made him stop and turn slowly to face his brother. 

“What,” Klaus asked flatly and Five hesitated again before dropping himself down to sit on the bed and patting the empty spot next to him in invitation. 

Klaus glanced back at the stairs, debated going down them anyways but- god, he was too tired for that. He was too tired, and there were too many of them, and he wasn’t sure he could make it all the way down without collapsing so instead he made his way back to Five and threw himself down on the bed beside him. 

“Tell me about it?” Five asked, far gentler than Klaus was expecting. 

Klaus was silent for a moment, fingers trailing up his own chest before finding the familiar weight of the dog tags and curling tightly around the metal, solid and grounding. 

“I wasn’t going to come back,” Klaus said, soft and hesitant. 

“Why?”

“...I met someone.” 

Five sucked in a quiet breath. “The dog tags?”

“Yeah.” Klaus nodded, fingers tightening further until the smooth metal bit into his palm. 

“Tell me about them?”

“His name was Dave.” Klaus let out a breath of a humorless laugh. “We soldiered together in A Shau Valley, in the mountain of the crouching beast.” His eyes fell closed, snapshots of his life with Dave (the life they had, the life they could have had, the life they _would have_ had, if-) assaulting his mind, springing tears to his eyes. He blinked his eyes back open and stared up at the ceiling, trembling ( _“Christ on a cracker, that was a close one, huh, Dave? Dave? Dave!”_ ). 

“He must’ve been special,” Five said softly and without heat, knocking their shoulders together. “Especially if he was able to put up with _you_.”

Klaus laughed breathlessly, tears finally falling despite his best efforts. “Oh, he was,” he murmured, breath hitching in his throat. “He was strong, and brave, and vulnerable and beautiful.” He choked back a sob (blue eyes and freckles and messy blond hair; a southern twang creeping into his voice when he was too sleepy to keep it in check; lips pursed and pouting when Klaus had to stumble back to his own cot before the others woke up; strong fingers on his hips and warm breath against his neck; arms around his waist and three little words whispered against his lips, soft and quiet, eyes wide and awe struck when Klaus whispered them back). “ _Beautiful_.” 

“Klaus…” Five’s hand came to rest on his knee, and Klaus kept talking like he didn’t hear him. 

“And I was foolish enough to follow him all the way to the front line. Foolish enough to love him.” Klaus shuddered, a wrecked sob finally torn from his throat. “I _love_ him, Five. I love him and- a-and...” 

“And he’s gone anyways,” Five finished softly. 

Klaus couldn’t find the words to explain, couldn’t find the strength to say them out loud, couldn’t get them out past the tears even if he wanted to, but Five was always the smartest, and he doesn’t need Klaus to say anything at all.

“You love him,” Five says, voice incredulous as he repeats. “And he’s gone anyways. You love him, and you think that’s why he’s gone. Because you went and loved him at all.” 

Klaus nodded, curling tighter into himself, fingers moving to tug at his own hair.

Five cursed, low and angry, before pulling Klaus roughly into his lap and just _holding_ him, like he was something precious that deserved to be held at all, and that just made Klaus cry harder. 

“He was gonna get me a ring,” Klaus giggled hysterically through the tears clogging his throat. “He was gonna put a ring on it, Fivey.” The grief hit him again, hard and sudden, and he couldn’t breathe past the sheer _weight_ of it. “We were gonna have a life, Five. We were going to have a _life_.” 

And then he was sobbing again, cradled in his big little brother's arms while Five remained silent and steady, a warm and comforting presence at his back. 

Klaus wasn’t sure how long they sat there, but by the time he was all cried out, he was _exhausted_ , slumped boneless and silent in Five’s arms. 

When Five spoke, his voice was solid, full of conviction. 

“I can’t promise that I’ll succeed,” he started. “The odds are stacked against us, more so than I’d like them to be. But I _can_ promise that I will do everything I can to bring him back to you, if we make it through this alive.” 

Klaus pushed himself upright on shaky arms, blinking at Five incredulously, voice small as he asked, “You’ll help me? Why?”

Five scoffed. “You really think I travelled back here because I _don’t_ care about my family's well being? Klaus, the only reason I’m here at all right now is for you guys.” 

Klaus blinked at his brother for a long moment before smiling, small and wobbly but genuine. 

“Thank you,” he whispered. 

“I already told you I can’t guarantee-”

“Five,” Klaus cut him off gently. “I know. I know. But...for trying. Thank you for even trying.” 

Five pursed his lips but then stood, saying decisively, “That’s what family is for,” before blinking out of the room in a flash of blue. 

He reappeared a moment later, looking almost grudging (Delores must have told him to come back), and pressed a kiss to Klaus’s forehead before blinking back out even faster than he’d returned. 

Klaus couldn’t help the giggle that worked its way past his lips at how _pink_ Five’s cheeks had been, even as warmth stirred to life in his chest, feeling like love, like comfort, like-

Like hope.

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Sorry about any weird formatting issues! Copy and paste sometimes screws with the formatting, but I'm too lazy to go in and fix it once it's pasted into ao3's text box ;D


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